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Titan volleyball players
come up huge in
Reno, Nevada
... Sports, p.14
Hit the road, Jack! A guide to
state parks in Illinois
.... Features, p. 5
016!
A quick
recipe for
guacamole
. Features, p. 10
Car overturned in Sigma Chi parking lot
By Stephanie Reinhart
Staff Writer
Several Illinois Wesleyan University
students who were awake after 2 a.m. on
Monday morning witnessed IWU security,
five Bloomington Police Department
squad cars and a fire engine congregated
around the Sigma Chi fraternity house.
According to Director of Security Chuck
Adam, the first call about the incident was
placed to IWU security at 2:10 a.m.
"A little after two in the morning, I heard
shouting and looked out of my window.
Other Harriett House residents and I saw
10-15 men throwing something at the
apartment parking lot across the street
from the Sigma Chi house," said junior
Brian Mertz, who spoke for the group. "I
made a call to security, and some of the
residents went outside to see what was
going on. When they got there, most of the
men were gone."
Security responded to the call, and an
officer spoke to the individuals remaining
in the parking lot. Approximately 15 min-utes
after the first call, the Harriett House
residents observed more activity.
"After security left, a group of men
came out of the Sigma Chi house, although
we couldn't identify any of them," Mertz
said. "They went over to a car that had
been demolished earlier that day and
flipped it over.
"We were worried about more acts of
vandalism to cars, and since security had-n't
returned or made their presence known,
one of the Harriett House residents placed
a call to 911."
Five Bloomington Police Department
squad cars arrived on the scene in response
to the call. IWU security also returned.
"Bloomington police officers checked
out the car. When IWU security arrived,
those offices, along with the Bloomington
officers, knocked on the door of Sigma
Chi," Mertz said. "Some of the males out-side
the house also spoke to the officers."
"We determined, along with the
Bloomington Police Department officers,
that a gas leak was present," Adam said.
"We deemed it a hazard since there was a
possibility the car might catch fire or
explode."
According to Adam, the Bloomington
Fire Department was then called to reme-dy
the situation.
"They had some fuel leak out, and once
that fuel leaked there was a danger," said
Bloomington Fire Marshall Bob Williams.
"Any time you have gas vapors, all it
takes is a spark, and that could be caused by
rubbing metal together or simply throwing a
cigarette down on the car. While the car
would not have exploded, it could certainly
burn up if a spark was provided."
According to Mertz, students observed
the fire department officers putting a white
powder on the car. Williams confirmed
that a powder called vermiculite was used
on the car.
"Vermiculite is something that will
absorb flammable liquid and keep it from
spreading," Williams said.
After learning that the owner of the car,
junior Phil Hurst, had given permission to
destroy the car, the Bloomington police
officers decided the incident was a univer-sity
matter.
"It was an appropriate response on the
part of the city," said Dean of Students Jim
Matthews. "The potential for fire was quite
serious, and we're viewing this as much
more than a prank. I would think that the
city is a bit frustrated. When that many
emergency vehicles have to come out,
there is always the possibility of accidents
or a need to be somewhere else for a real
emergency."
"It was not a random incident," Adam
said. "The owner of the vehicle had some
complicity with the event. I 'don't think
they realized there would be any danger."
According to Associate Dean of Student
Affairs Darcy Greder, the individuals
involved in the incident have since identi-fied
themselves to administration.
"The individuals responsible for the
event have voluntarily come forward, and
they are now entered into the disciplinary
process with the university," Greder said.
"They are taking full responsibility for the
university standards that were violated.
Concurrent with that, the Sigma Chi fra-ternity
is also working with those individ-uals
to hold them accountable to the frater-nity
standards that were also violated."
Greder said that a total of 10 individuals
were involved in the incident. Because of
the Family Education Rights and Privacy
Act (FERPA), she could not comment on
individual student disciplinary records.
"Disciplinary acts are protected under
FERPA, since they become part of a stu-dent's
educational record," Greder said. "I
can confirm that those responsible will be
held accountable, and they will face a pack-age
of sanctions designed to restore their
status within the university community."
According to Sigma Chi President
iDnacvidide ntR aiss huon iqauned. university officials, the
"Their actions were not condoned or
sanctioned by Sigma Chi, and I wish it
hadn't happened," Rasho said.
"It is a misnomer to call it a Sigma Chi
incident," Greder said. "It was more of an
incident that happened on university prop-erty
at the Sigma Chi house."
"It wasn't a chapter tradition or ritual,
but simply a choice of certain individuals,"
said Angela Flinn, assistant dean of stu-dents
for Greek affairs. "When students
take actions without putting thought
behind them, it tends to negatively affect
the reputation of fraternities and sororities,
and that certainly doesn't help the Greek
community. I am happy to see that the
individuals have come forward on their
own."
"There was no real purpose, we just felt
like doing it," Hurst said. "We decided to
smash up the car with a baseball bat. The
car didn't run, and I didn't want it any-more."
Hurst said he was not outside when his
car was overturned.
"It was not planned," Hurst said.
"Nobody knew it was going to happen
see CAR p. 2
Walibreaking
sets tone for
student center
By Jacqueline Byrn
Staff Writer
"Hopefully, the wall-breaking event will communicate
to students a sense of ownership and that students have a
stake in the Hansen Student Center," said Dean of
Students Jim Matthews.
With approximately 200 people in attendance,
Wednesday was an important date for the new Student
Center as well as future renovation projects.
A new tradition was introduced to Illinois Wesleyan
University in the form of a new tool - the memorial
sledgehammer. This sledgehammer, to be used in all
future renovation projects, has the following engraved
plaque on it:
"IWU Students and Trustee Broke the Wall with this
Sledgehammer for the Hansen Student Center on April
12, 2000."
"This is a symbolic process similar to the ground-breaking
ceremony for the library," said Ken Browning,
vice president for business and finance.
The ceremony was preceded by music provided by
IWU's jazz quartet. Matthews, former Student Senate
President Harold Gauthier, Student Senate President Matt
Glavin, alumnus Thomas Hansen and President of the
Board of Trustees Craig Hart spoke at the ceremony.
The student center was made possible by Thomas
Hansen, an 1982 Illinois Wesleyan graduate, who donat-ed
money to the project.
"I'm amazed that I am playing such a significant role in
this project," Hansen said. "Having the opportunity to
give back to the university is an extremely rewarding
experience."
Craig Hart, member of the Steering Committee and
president of the Board of Trustees, took the first swing at
the wall with the ceremonial sledgehammer. He was fol-
1919 - A group of concerned alumni
formed the "Wesleyan Forward
Movement Association." The commit-tee
succeeded in preventing the reloca-tion
of Illinois Wesleyan's campus from
Bloomington to Springfield, Ill. The
alumni strongly opposed this proposed
move and stated that "such action
would mean to the alumni the loss of
their alma mater and would arouse
undying resentment in their hearts."
1956 - Tension between Greek life and
newspaper staff flared up when The
Argus editors claimed that Greek affili-ation
ran counter to the school's liberal
Former Student Senate President Michael
Balsley takes a swing at the Hansen Student
Center wall in during the ceremonial wall-breaking
last Wednesday. Jason Han/The Argus
lowed by Hansen, Browning, Provost and Dean of the
Faculty Janet McNew, Assistant Professor of Accounting
David Willis, Director of Physical Plant Bud Jorgenson,
Harry Hansen (Tom Hansen's father) and Matthews.
Following this representation of administration, the
past three Student Senate presidents -- Michael Balsley,
see WALLBREAKING p. 2
arts program. Not only did the editorial "shocked and angry that our student
board "refuse to recognize fraternities body would usurp the rules and duty of
and sororities as integral parts of a lib- the Methodist Church in the area of
eral education," but they referred to the abstinence from tobacco."
entire Greek system as "a refuge from
social rejection." 1968 - A few days after his assassina-
1964 - The administration created a
double standard concerning tobacco
products on campus. While a cigarette
vending machine remained in the Dug
Out, administrators refused to allow
tobacco product ads to appear in The
Argus. Letters to the editor about this
controversy flooded in. One student,
John Cummens, wrote that he was
tion, a group of students gathered on the
quad to hold a candlelight vigil in mem-ory
of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. While
singing "We Shall Overcome," students
marched to the flagpole where they
placed memorial wreaths. King visited
the campus on Feb. 10, 1966.
- Compiled by Natalie Studwell
Conference to showcase
student research projects
By Brian Mertz
Staff Writer
Would you like to find out what "Brown-
Headed Cowbird Parasitism in Bison-Grazed and
Ungrazed Tallgrass Prairie" means? Senior Sasha
Latham will present this topic at the John Wesley
Powell IWU Student Research Conference, which
takes place tonight and all day tomorrow at
Illinois Wesleyan University.
According to Roger Schnaitter, conference
coordinator and IWU associate provost, the 83
students presenting research this year make up the
largest number the conference has ever had.
"At the previous three conferences our numbers
have always been in the upper 50s. We've never
had as many as this," Schnaitter said.
Students will present their original academic
research projects in two forms, either a poster pre-sentation
or an oral presentation on Saturday. This
year a fine arts component has been added, which
may explain some of the increase in student
research participants.
Tonight three music composition students will
speak about and perform their works at 7 p.m. in
Evelyn Chapel and will feature works from junior
Sean Parsons and seniors Steve Winfield and
Phaidon Tsourkas.
The honors display of the art exhibition for
seniors Dan Giese, Anna Reed, Eric Snowden and
Sarah Studnicki will take place in the Merwin
Gallery from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
The conference will continue tomorrow
between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. with the traditional
research presentations. Research projects range
widely in discipline, including the natural sci-ences,
English, music, psychology, economics,
political science, math, theater and history.
Latham is returning to present at her second
John Wesley Powell Research Conference. Her
research studies the effect the presence of bison
have on cowbirds. She plans to attend graduate
school to study conservation biology.
"My topic has never been studied before, and
hopefully conservation biologists will be interest-ed
in my findings," Latham said.
Latham believes the Research Conference is a
unique event for students.
"It's great practice for graduate school, where
you have to present your findings to others all the
time," Latham said. "The conference also allows
me to display the huge amount of work I've done
on this project to people on this campus who
might not have even known I was working on it."
see CONFERENCE p. 3
By Dina Batlivala,Tom Carroll, Jared Johnson
and Jeanette Otis
Staff Writers
When weeds invade a garden or a lawn, most
people can pull them out by hand. When weeds
invade the 3,000 acres of farmland that McLean
County farmer Bob Bray tends, more drastic mea-sures
are required.
First, Bray calls an agronomist and describes his
problem. Maybe he's seeing a new species of
invader. Maybe he's
seeing a lag in the V
growth rate of his corn
or soybeans. r u Whatever the ques-tion,
the agronomist pro-vides
the solution and
measures that solution
in ounces - of pesti-cides,
herbicides or fertilizers. It's these chemicals
that have sparked the ire of many environmental-ists
who blame farmers like Bray for endangering
the health of the environment and the people who
live in it.
Bray wants those people to realize that when it
comes to pollution, he's not the enemy.
"I consider myself an environmentalist," Bray
It
swaaidte. r "jIu swt aanst am ugcoho da sc lyeoanu edaor. thW ahnyd wgoouoldd nc'lte aIn?
I've lived my whole life here. My grandchildren
live here."
Agriculture affects anyone living in McLean
County. According to the McLean County Farm
Bureau, 97.7 percent of the total land area is farm-land,
compromising 709,106 acres. With so much
land devoted to agriculture, farmers have a signif-icant
effect upon the environment and the people
who live in it.
"Farmers aren't like
you or me. They can't
m []" m r jtbuhuseyti rag op episrntoitocpi edaret y st,to"o rues esa anoiddn
Amy Bradford, director
ltit of issue management at
the Illinois Farm
Bureau.
"Almost all of the agricultural chemicals used by
farmers in Illinois cannot be sprayed without a
license. Farmers have to undergo special training
to use these chemicals, and every couple of years
they have to be recertified."
Like Bray, most farmers in McLean County use
conventional chemical methods to counter threats
see COUNTY IN CRISIS p. 4
fTrheee psrpiceeec ohf
... Opinions, p. 9
Local farmers face
agricultural pollution

Argus issues published from 1894-Spring 2003 were scanned at 600 dpi on a NM1000-SS scanner by Northern Micrographics, La Crosse, Wisconsin. Fulltext OCR was accomplished by the same company in Summer 2009. Issues published from the fall of 2003-present are born-digital.

Please email Tate Archives at archives@iwu.edu or call 309-556-1535 for more information. Permission to reproduce these images must be granted by IWU.

Full Text

Titan volleyball players
come up huge in
Reno, Nevada
... Sports, p.14
Hit the road, Jack! A guide to
state parks in Illinois
.... Features, p. 5
016!
A quick
recipe for
guacamole
. Features, p. 10
Car overturned in Sigma Chi parking lot
By Stephanie Reinhart
Staff Writer
Several Illinois Wesleyan University
students who were awake after 2 a.m. on
Monday morning witnessed IWU security,
five Bloomington Police Department
squad cars and a fire engine congregated
around the Sigma Chi fraternity house.
According to Director of Security Chuck
Adam, the first call about the incident was
placed to IWU security at 2:10 a.m.
"A little after two in the morning, I heard
shouting and looked out of my window.
Other Harriett House residents and I saw
10-15 men throwing something at the
apartment parking lot across the street
from the Sigma Chi house," said junior
Brian Mertz, who spoke for the group. "I
made a call to security, and some of the
residents went outside to see what was
going on. When they got there, most of the
men were gone."
Security responded to the call, and an
officer spoke to the individuals remaining
in the parking lot. Approximately 15 min-utes
after the first call, the Harriett House
residents observed more activity.
"After security left, a group of men
came out of the Sigma Chi house, although
we couldn't identify any of them," Mertz
said. "They went over to a car that had
been demolished earlier that day and
flipped it over.
"We were worried about more acts of
vandalism to cars, and since security had-n't
returned or made their presence known,
one of the Harriett House residents placed
a call to 911."
Five Bloomington Police Department
squad cars arrived on the scene in response
to the call. IWU security also returned.
"Bloomington police officers checked
out the car. When IWU security arrived,
those offices, along with the Bloomington
officers, knocked on the door of Sigma
Chi," Mertz said. "Some of the males out-side
the house also spoke to the officers."
"We determined, along with the
Bloomington Police Department officers,
that a gas leak was present," Adam said.
"We deemed it a hazard since there was a
possibility the car might catch fire or
explode."
According to Adam, the Bloomington
Fire Department was then called to reme-dy
the situation.
"They had some fuel leak out, and once
that fuel leaked there was a danger," said
Bloomington Fire Marshall Bob Williams.
"Any time you have gas vapors, all it
takes is a spark, and that could be caused by
rubbing metal together or simply throwing a
cigarette down on the car. While the car
would not have exploded, it could certainly
burn up if a spark was provided."
According to Mertz, students observed
the fire department officers putting a white
powder on the car. Williams confirmed
that a powder called vermiculite was used
on the car.
"Vermiculite is something that will
absorb flammable liquid and keep it from
spreading," Williams said.
After learning that the owner of the car,
junior Phil Hurst, had given permission to
destroy the car, the Bloomington police
officers decided the incident was a univer-sity
matter.
"It was an appropriate response on the
part of the city," said Dean of Students Jim
Matthews. "The potential for fire was quite
serious, and we're viewing this as much
more than a prank. I would think that the
city is a bit frustrated. When that many
emergency vehicles have to come out,
there is always the possibility of accidents
or a need to be somewhere else for a real
emergency."
"It was not a random incident," Adam
said. "The owner of the vehicle had some
complicity with the event. I 'don't think
they realized there would be any danger."
According to Associate Dean of Student
Affairs Darcy Greder, the individuals
involved in the incident have since identi-fied
themselves to administration.
"The individuals responsible for the
event have voluntarily come forward, and
they are now entered into the disciplinary
process with the university," Greder said.
"They are taking full responsibility for the
university standards that were violated.
Concurrent with that, the Sigma Chi fra-ternity
is also working with those individ-uals
to hold them accountable to the frater-nity
standards that were also violated."
Greder said that a total of 10 individuals
were involved in the incident. Because of
the Family Education Rights and Privacy
Act (FERPA), she could not comment on
individual student disciplinary records.
"Disciplinary acts are protected under
FERPA, since they become part of a stu-dent's
educational record," Greder said. "I
can confirm that those responsible will be
held accountable, and they will face a pack-age
of sanctions designed to restore their
status within the university community."
According to Sigma Chi President
iDnacvidide ntR aiss huon iqauned. university officials, the
"Their actions were not condoned or
sanctioned by Sigma Chi, and I wish it
hadn't happened," Rasho said.
"It is a misnomer to call it a Sigma Chi
incident," Greder said. "It was more of an
incident that happened on university prop-erty
at the Sigma Chi house."
"It wasn't a chapter tradition or ritual,
but simply a choice of certain individuals,"
said Angela Flinn, assistant dean of stu-dents
for Greek affairs. "When students
take actions without putting thought
behind them, it tends to negatively affect
the reputation of fraternities and sororities,
and that certainly doesn't help the Greek
community. I am happy to see that the
individuals have come forward on their
own."
"There was no real purpose, we just felt
like doing it," Hurst said. "We decided to
smash up the car with a baseball bat. The
car didn't run, and I didn't want it any-more."
Hurst said he was not outside when his
car was overturned.
"It was not planned," Hurst said.
"Nobody knew it was going to happen
see CAR p. 2
Walibreaking
sets tone for
student center
By Jacqueline Byrn
Staff Writer
"Hopefully, the wall-breaking event will communicate
to students a sense of ownership and that students have a
stake in the Hansen Student Center," said Dean of
Students Jim Matthews.
With approximately 200 people in attendance,
Wednesday was an important date for the new Student
Center as well as future renovation projects.
A new tradition was introduced to Illinois Wesleyan
University in the form of a new tool - the memorial
sledgehammer. This sledgehammer, to be used in all
future renovation projects, has the following engraved
plaque on it:
"IWU Students and Trustee Broke the Wall with this
Sledgehammer for the Hansen Student Center on April
12, 2000."
"This is a symbolic process similar to the ground-breaking
ceremony for the library," said Ken Browning,
vice president for business and finance.
The ceremony was preceded by music provided by
IWU's jazz quartet. Matthews, former Student Senate
President Harold Gauthier, Student Senate President Matt
Glavin, alumnus Thomas Hansen and President of the
Board of Trustees Craig Hart spoke at the ceremony.
The student center was made possible by Thomas
Hansen, an 1982 Illinois Wesleyan graduate, who donat-ed
money to the project.
"I'm amazed that I am playing such a significant role in
this project," Hansen said. "Having the opportunity to
give back to the university is an extremely rewarding
experience."
Craig Hart, member of the Steering Committee and
president of the Board of Trustees, took the first swing at
the wall with the ceremonial sledgehammer. He was fol-
1919 - A group of concerned alumni
formed the "Wesleyan Forward
Movement Association." The commit-tee
succeeded in preventing the reloca-tion
of Illinois Wesleyan's campus from
Bloomington to Springfield, Ill. The
alumni strongly opposed this proposed
move and stated that "such action
would mean to the alumni the loss of
their alma mater and would arouse
undying resentment in their hearts."
1956 - Tension between Greek life and
newspaper staff flared up when The
Argus editors claimed that Greek affili-ation
ran counter to the school's liberal
Former Student Senate President Michael
Balsley takes a swing at the Hansen Student
Center wall in during the ceremonial wall-breaking
last Wednesday. Jason Han/The Argus
lowed by Hansen, Browning, Provost and Dean of the
Faculty Janet McNew, Assistant Professor of Accounting
David Willis, Director of Physical Plant Bud Jorgenson,
Harry Hansen (Tom Hansen's father) and Matthews.
Following this representation of administration, the
past three Student Senate presidents -- Michael Balsley,
see WALLBREAKING p. 2
arts program. Not only did the editorial "shocked and angry that our student
board "refuse to recognize fraternities body would usurp the rules and duty of
and sororities as integral parts of a lib- the Methodist Church in the area of
eral education," but they referred to the abstinence from tobacco."
entire Greek system as "a refuge from
social rejection." 1968 - A few days after his assassina-
1964 - The administration created a
double standard concerning tobacco
products on campus. While a cigarette
vending machine remained in the Dug
Out, administrators refused to allow
tobacco product ads to appear in The
Argus. Letters to the editor about this
controversy flooded in. One student,
John Cummens, wrote that he was
tion, a group of students gathered on the
quad to hold a candlelight vigil in mem-ory
of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. While
singing "We Shall Overcome," students
marched to the flagpole where they
placed memorial wreaths. King visited
the campus on Feb. 10, 1966.
- Compiled by Natalie Studwell
Conference to showcase
student research projects
By Brian Mertz
Staff Writer
Would you like to find out what "Brown-
Headed Cowbird Parasitism in Bison-Grazed and
Ungrazed Tallgrass Prairie" means? Senior Sasha
Latham will present this topic at the John Wesley
Powell IWU Student Research Conference, which
takes place tonight and all day tomorrow at
Illinois Wesleyan University.
According to Roger Schnaitter, conference
coordinator and IWU associate provost, the 83
students presenting research this year make up the
largest number the conference has ever had.
"At the previous three conferences our numbers
have always been in the upper 50s. We've never
had as many as this," Schnaitter said.
Students will present their original academic
research projects in two forms, either a poster pre-sentation
or an oral presentation on Saturday. This
year a fine arts component has been added, which
may explain some of the increase in student
research participants.
Tonight three music composition students will
speak about and perform their works at 7 p.m. in
Evelyn Chapel and will feature works from junior
Sean Parsons and seniors Steve Winfield and
Phaidon Tsourkas.
The honors display of the art exhibition for
seniors Dan Giese, Anna Reed, Eric Snowden and
Sarah Studnicki will take place in the Merwin
Gallery from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
The conference will continue tomorrow
between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. with the traditional
research presentations. Research projects range
widely in discipline, including the natural sci-ences,
English, music, psychology, economics,
political science, math, theater and history.
Latham is returning to present at her second
John Wesley Powell Research Conference. Her
research studies the effect the presence of bison
have on cowbirds. She plans to attend graduate
school to study conservation biology.
"My topic has never been studied before, and
hopefully conservation biologists will be interest-ed
in my findings," Latham said.
Latham believes the Research Conference is a
unique event for students.
"It's great practice for graduate school, where
you have to present your findings to others all the
time," Latham said. "The conference also allows
me to display the huge amount of work I've done
on this project to people on this campus who
might not have even known I was working on it."
see CONFERENCE p. 3
By Dina Batlivala,Tom Carroll, Jared Johnson
and Jeanette Otis
Staff Writers
When weeds invade a garden or a lawn, most
people can pull them out by hand. When weeds
invade the 3,000 acres of farmland that McLean
County farmer Bob Bray tends, more drastic mea-sures
are required.
First, Bray calls an agronomist and describes his
problem. Maybe he's seeing a new species of
invader. Maybe he's
seeing a lag in the V
growth rate of his corn
or soybeans. r u Whatever the ques-tion,
the agronomist pro-vides
the solution and
measures that solution
in ounces - of pesti-cides,
herbicides or fertilizers. It's these chemicals
that have sparked the ire of many environmental-ists
who blame farmers like Bray for endangering
the health of the environment and the people who
live in it.
Bray wants those people to realize that when it
comes to pollution, he's not the enemy.
"I consider myself an environmentalist," Bray
It
swaaidte. r "jIu swt aanst am ugcoho da sc lyeoanu edaor. thW ahnyd wgoouoldd nc'lte aIn?
I've lived my whole life here. My grandchildren
live here."
Agriculture affects anyone living in McLean
County. According to the McLean County Farm
Bureau, 97.7 percent of the total land area is farm-land,
compromising 709,106 acres. With so much
land devoted to agriculture, farmers have a signif-icant
effect upon the environment and the people
who live in it.
"Farmers aren't like
you or me. They can't
m []" m r jtbuhuseyti rag op episrntoitocpi edaret y st,to"o rues esa anoiddn
Amy Bradford, director
ltit of issue management at
the Illinois Farm
Bureau.
"Almost all of the agricultural chemicals used by
farmers in Illinois cannot be sprayed without a
license. Farmers have to undergo special training
to use these chemicals, and every couple of years
they have to be recertified."
Like Bray, most farmers in McLean County use
conventional chemical methods to counter threats
see COUNTY IN CRISIS p. 4
fTrheee psrpiceeec ohf
... Opinions, p. 9
Local farmers face
agricultural pollution